After a few days back in bustling Bangkok I jumped back on a plane destined to Bali (the place I had made my home for two and a half months before embarking on my whirlwind travel of South East Asia.) Over my remaining three days abroad I crammed in seeing everyone from my dive studies who where still around, visits to our beloved night market and two solid days at the beach getting that last minute tan.. Yeah it was a pretty rough couple days..
Where to next? Well for some reason I decided Vernon would be a great place to start my newfound dive instructor career... But hey, maybe that will give me a chance to crack open the Spanish books because Central America is next on the list!
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Cambodia
Of the past four countries I have visited, each had been impacted in some way during the Vietnam War. I found the continueing struggle, however, to be the most evident in Cambodia. It started with a heart-breaking visit to the Teul Sleng Museum, once an elementary school, transformed into a prison and place of torture during the Khmer Rouge Regime now showcases eerily complete documentation on each prisoner. Evidence of the horrific genocide is also well preserved at one of the many 'Killing Fields' in Cheung Ek, where the mass graves remain. To this day bones and bits of clothing continue to find their way to the surface with each rainfall, reminding us of the nation's unnecessary suffering. Being so lucky to live in Canada, I found it hard to believe that in this generation in Cambodia each person has experienced or are a son/daughter of someone who lived and likely died during such suffering. Everyone had a story of their own.
Cambodia isn't all heartbreak though. It is also home to the infamous and breath-taking Temples of Angkor. Right up there with Stonehenge and the pyramids, it's a mystery how such an incredible stone civilization was ever created. Together with a guy from my hostel, we hired a tuk-tuk for the day, bought a 1-day pass and explored the temples from sunrise to sunset, with no better place to retire for the day than Siem Reap's very own 'Pub Street'. I finished my tour of Cambodia with a stop in Battambang where we visited Cambodia's only winery, climbed Phnom Sampeau to visit the 'Killing Caves' and took a ride on one of the only few remaining bamboo trains.
Back in Thailand I will begin my journey home.
Cambodia isn't all heartbreak though. It is also home to the infamous and breath-taking Temples of Angkor. Right up there with Stonehenge and the pyramids, it's a mystery how such an incredible stone civilization was ever created. Together with a guy from my hostel, we hired a tuk-tuk for the day, bought a 1-day pass and explored the temples from sunrise to sunset, with no better place to retire for the day than Siem Reap's very own 'Pub Street'. I finished my tour of Cambodia with a stop in Battambang where we visited Cambodia's only winery, climbed Phnom Sampeau to visit the 'Killing Caves' and took a ride on one of the only few remaining bamboo trains.
Back in Thailand I will begin my journey home.
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